Brigadoon Daily
Your daily dose of the emerging issues + independent thinkers shaping commerce + culture
November 5, 2021
‘All Things Must Pass’
TOP FIVE
1. COP 26: 'One of the whitest' climate conferences in years
2. NYC has a crypto-bro mayor
3. How restaurants can win back customers
4. A new 10-year plan for the cosmos
5. Who wants to be GM of the New York Mets?
ROSS RANT
More BS from me!
Part two of my conversation with Daniel Ross on A Load of BS: The Behavioural Science Podcast.
We chat campaigning, polling, and political self-sabotage.
Listen here.
Books referenced:
+ The Clustering of America, by Michael J. Weiss
+ American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America, by Colin Woodard
+ Alchemy: The Magic of Original Thinking in a World of Mind-Numbing Conformity, by Rory Sutherland
+ The Win Without Pitching Manifesto, by Blair Enns
+ Confessions of an Advertising Man, by David Ogilvy
+ What It Takes: The Way to the White House, by Richard Ben Cramer
+ The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, by Robert A. Caro
+ Working: Researching, Interviewing, Writing, by Robert A. Caro
+ All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain’s Political Class, by Tim Shipman
Listen here.
GLOBALIZATION + STATECRAFT
COP 26: 'One of the whitest' climate conferences in years, say environmentalists: The countries hit hardest by climate change are struggling to attend a UN climate summit that has been hailed as the "best last chance" to stop global warming. What are the implications?
DW
More than 40 countries agree to phase out coal-fired power: Guardian reports critics say the pledge to end use of dirtiest fuel source in the 2030s and 40s does not go far enough.
130 trillion: A group of the world's top banks, insurance companies, and asset managers will raise an astounding $130 trillion worth of private capital to help the world achieve Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Politico: COP26’s key task: Stamping out climate cheating
White House says OPEC risks imperiling economic recovery: FT reports the cartel and allies reject US call to help tame rising oil prices.
AFP: 'Grave concern' over COVID in Europe as German cases soar
Axios: US COVID cases fall by 20%, deaths down 15%
+ The White House on Thursday unveiled rules requiring people working for private companies with at least 100 employees to be either fully vaccinated or tested weekly for COVID-19.
WP: Britain authorizes Merck’s molnupiravir, the world’s first approval of oral COVID-19 treatment pill
You’re boosted! Now what? No one knows exactly what the rules are for post-booster behavior.
Katherine J. Wu
Chile’s presidential race goes virtual with 6 candidates in quarantine: Bloomberg reports almost two weeks before Chile’s presidential election, one of the candidates has contracted Covid-19, sending five of his opponents into quarantine and forcing campaigning to go virtual.
EU hints at resolution to post-Brexit fishing dispute: Politico reports France and UK are at loggerheads, but technical talks have created a ‘positive dynamic,’ says European Commission.
The Times: Owen Paterson resigns as MP after sleaze row backlash
+ Former minister says he will leave ‘cruel world of politics’
Let’s call out the Tories’ behavior for what it is: corruption: Conservative support for Owen Paterson is a disgrace. Politics needs to be cleaned up.
Keir Starmer
A new book casts Winston Churchill as a racist imperialist. This is misguided history.
Michael Gerson
US and China must heed Kissinger’s stark warnings: Cold war strategist says artificial intelligence poses a far greater challenge than nuclear weapons.
Edward Luce
By falsifying history, China’s leaders risk repeating past mistakes: To learn from the past, one must study it dispassionately.
Economist
North Korea can make more uranium for nuclear bombs than previously thought: WSJ reports the Kim regime is making a fraction of potential fissile material that could be used for bombs, according to new research based on satellite imagery analysis.
Axios: US embassy in Ethiopia allows some staff to leave amid deepening conflict
Tigray conflict: EU calls for immediate Ethiopian cease-fire: DW reports African and Western nations have called for an urgent halt to fighting in Ethiopia as the conflict in Tigray marks one year. The US has sent a special envoy to the capital to push for cease-fire talks.
Ethiopia at risk of Balkanization: Two years after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, his country is engulfed in a war with the potential to destabilize the whole region for decades to come.
Ludger Schadomsky
POLITICS + CAMPAIGNS
Why Biden donors are frustrated: Hurt feelings and voting rights alarm: Some of the top Democratic contributors have become increasingly dissatisfied with a lack of communication from the White House — and impatient with inaction on voting rights.
NYT
New Jersey pollster admits to a big miss in governor vote: ‘I blew it’: Bloomberg reports the director of a New Jersey poll that had Governor Phil Murphy with an 11 percentage-point lead over Republican Jack Ciattarelli apologized on Thursday to both campaigns and voters, saying it may be time to get rid of pre-election polling. “I blew it,” Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University poll, said in a guest column published by NJ.com.
The Hill: Republicans see Youngkin win as blueprint for midterms
+ Kamala Harris said the Democratic Party “had great wins” in Tuesday’s elections
WP: Congressional Democrats say passing their agenda is the only path forward. History says that might not matter for 2022.
The powerful GOP strategy Democrats must counter if they want to win
Tory Gavito + Adam Jentleson
+ Liz Cheney says Jan. 6 committee has interviewed more than 150 people as part of its investigation.
Indictment of Igor Danchenko casts new doubts on sourcing of Steele dossier: WSJ reports special counsel John Durham alleges a key source lied to the FBI about how he collected information about former President Donald Trump and Russia, getting some of it from a Democratic operative.
Edward Durr Jr., Republican truck driver and political novice, defeats longtime New Jersey state Senate president Steve Sweeney
WP
+ Top NJ lawmaker Steve Sweeney defeated by GOP newcomer Edward Durr, who spent just $153 on his campaign
+ Nearly half his campaign spending ($66.64) was at Dunkin Donuts
AFP: Matthew McConaughey weighs 'outlaw' bid for Texas governor
WP: Muriel Bowser will seek a third term as DC mayor
We finally have our first crypto-bro mayor
Benjamin Hart
+ @ericadamsfornyc: In New York we always go big, so I’m going to take my first THREE paychecks in Bitcoin when I become mayor. NYC is going to be the center of the cryptocurrency industry and other fast-growing, innovative industries! Just wait!
Corporate America: Stop hiding behind the Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtable
Ryan Gellert
+ Ryan Gellert is CEO @ Patagonia
DISRUPTION + INNOVATION
That electric car is not as green as you think: Those things don’t just grow on trees, you know.
Mark Gongloff
COMMERCE
Bloomberg: Peloton plunges after pandemic sales boom turns to bust
+ MR: Peloton's public aim is to reach 50 million people in new markets. But consider, the current market for bike/treadmill owners is believed to be 34 million. So Foley and his team need to acquire 100 percent of this current market and still add 16 million more people.
DeFi — the ‘wild west’ of crypto — is next on regulators’ hit list
CNBC
How restaurants can win back customers: What research reveals: Among the strategies: Use the scent of peppermint, carefully place bookcases—and try some blue food.
WSJ
+ CPG sales and marketing firm Acosta found that 92% of American families want to eat at home as much (72%) or more often (20%) than they do now, even after the pandemic.
‘From un-investable to generational wealth in 5 years’: What you can learn from Rob Dyrdek’s MFM appearance.
Trends
+ "Nothing makes me crazier than when someone says AI is better than human intelligence. It is a subset of human intelligence." -- Cathy Bessant, Bank of America Chief Operations Officer
MARKETING + COMMUNICATIONS
Watch: Bridge the divide: How to overcome obstacles and attract customers
Leigh George
SPACE + SCIENCE
+ An artist’s rendering of the Giant Magellan Telescope in Chile. Astronomers propose linking it with another giant telescope, the Thirty Meter Telescope, to create the Extremely Large Telescope project.
A new 10-year plan for the cosmos: On astronomers’ wish list for the next decade: two giant telescopes and a space telescope to search for life and habitable worlds beyond Earth.
NYT
Tom Hanks says Jeff Bezos invited him to go on Blue Origin’s spaceflight last month — but asked the actor to pay $28 million.
PERFORMANCE
How studying the lives of others can jolt you out of your rut: A private investigator’s tips: Build networks, clear your mind, and stay off social media.
Arianne Cohen
+ @DanSullivanSC: Surround yourself with people who remind you of the future more than the past.
CULTURE
Why Thanksgiving is the best time to travel internationally: A perennial tradition for some travel insiders, heading abroad in late November comes with extra benefits in 2021.
Nikki Ekstein
After 14 years, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss finally reunite: The duo worked with T Bone Burnett on the million-selling triumph “Raising Sand,” in 2007. Its sequel is once again an alternative to nearly all of its pop contemporaries.
NYT
The unmaking of a Beatle: George Harrison’s widow and son on the legacy of ‘All Things Must Pass’
LAT
SPORT
Fox acquired US rights to broadcast Europe’s UEFA soccer matches, deepening its commitment to live sports.
Who wants to be GM of the New York Mets? No, seriously, they’re looking. Top candidates are proving elusive.
Jason Gay
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Curation and commentary by Marc A. Ross | Founder @ Brigadoon
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